Wednesday 8th March – On Safari

The rules at this campsite stated no generator use until 10am - The latest ever!  So, being awake at 8am we were unable to turn on the heating or use the water pump so I suggested to Becky that we go and explore the beach.  We saw plenty of ground squirrels and ducks but it was tricky to get to the beach itself as we were by a rivulet that was blocking our way.  Then, a large swathe was cordoned off to allow for the ground-nesting bird population to not be disturbed, which is fair enough.  When we managed to reach the beach it was very pebbly and exposed with warning signs about strong rip currents preventing swimming, so no bathing there!

The sun had come through so it was actually warmer sat on a bench outside the RV than back inside.  We sat in the sunshine and put the world to rights until 10am when showers could then be run before it was time to leave.

Not a bad sized herd....

We headed back towards Hearst Castle to reach the bay where the elephant seals can be found for most of the year.  But on route we spotted the zebras that had evaded us yesterday! It was a bizarre spectacle to see them in the middle of the green rolling hills where we were not expecting to see them.

My favourite zebra photo - birds hitching a free ride

Mission accomplished with the zebras, we moved on to the bay.  The Piedras blancas population of 23000 elephant seals are never seen here all at once.  In March it is mostly pups on beach.  They are about 8 weeks old and weaned but not strong enough to swim to sea on their own yet, they go into the sea to practise swimming and build their strength before they launch off to sea until Autumn.  We stayed and watched them for ages, they were so entertaining and the few adults that remained were HUGE!  

They look very happy to be sun-bathing!

Good pic to show the size comparison between the pups and an adult

 

They shower themselves in sand using their flippers to cool themselves down

One of the adults coming in from a swim

Panoramic view of the beach - I could've stayed there watching all day

We headed back down route one and East to make ground to Sequioa, but found ourselves in wine country around Paso Robles.  We got distracted at Hunt Cellars tasting shop where Becky and I did seven tastings of red wine before buying a bottle each!

Our stop-off at Hunt Cellars

So, Simon did all the driving today! 
We kept making towards the National Park but decided we would need to stop short at ‘Sun & Fun RV park’ in Tulare.  We arrived just past 5pm, bagging a spot with PA for only $25.  As we had some premium red wine, it seemed only right to break out some beef steaks and light the BBQ.  Becky’s first Barbecue with us went down well – sweet jacket potatoes, corn on the cob, steak and red wine with roasted marshmallows for dessert.